If you're trying to decide whether a career in human services would be the right choice for you, you're probably interested in obtaining accurate human services salary information. While human services jobs are definitely rewarding, the paycheck is no doubt one of the most important aspects affecting your final decision. Let's take a look at what your earning potential could realistically be after graduation from college with a bachelor's in human services.
Social Workers' Salaries
As a social worker, you could expect to earn an annual salary range from $28,800 to $78,510. In 2016, social workers as a group were earning median annual compensation of $46,890 and hourly compensation of $22.54.
As these figures illustrate, there's a dramatic difference between the highest paychecks and the lowest ones paid to social workers. There are several different factors that affect pay rates in this line of work. Social workers conduct business in a variety of settings, some of which pay more than others do. Hospitals employed the highest-paid social workers; this group earned median yearly salaries of $57,650 in 2016. Individual and family services employed the lowest-paid social workers. Their annual median earnings were a modest $39,260. Other factors affecting pay include academic credentials, previous work experience, geographic location, personal charisma and individual negotiating ability.
Social and Community Service Managers' Salaries
As a social and community services manager, you could expect to earn an annual salary ranging from $39,770 to $110,970. As of 2016, community service managers were earning median annual compensation of $64,680. Median hourly compensation is reported at $31.10.
State and local governments offer the top-paying roles for social and community service managers, with median annual salaries as high as $75,790. Religious organizations, professional organizations and other organizations also paid attractive salaries to their community service managers, with median annual compensation for this group reported at $66,170. Median annual compensation from nursing homes was $60,320. Some of the lowest paid managers were employed by rehabilitation services. This group earned median annual pay of $58,270.
A bachelor's degree is the minimum academic credential you'll need for obtaining work as a social and community service manager. Many of the workers in this niche hold master's degrees.
Social and Human Services Assistants' Salaries
For comparison purposes, let's take a look at what kind of salary you could expect to earn from a human services job if you decide not to obtain your bachelor's degree. The position of social and human services assistant does not usually require a college degree. A high school diploma is the entry-level academic requirement for working in most positions of this nature. The median yearly compensation for this work is $31,810 per year. The hourly compensation is $15.29.
As you can deduce from comparing these figures, human services is a field in which it's well worth earning at least a bachelor's degree. Your earning potential as a social worker or community services manager is significantly higher than your salary as a human services assistant would be. We hope this information satisfies your curiosity about the human services salary range you'd be likeliest to encounter when seeking work in this field after graduation.
Related resource: Top 14 Cheap Online Human Services Degree Programs (Bachelor's)